West Michigan and the Greater Grand Rapids area can be very family-friendly and child-friendly, if you know how to find the right events! There is always something engaging going on around this city, and event organizers know not to forget about the smallest residents of our community (or their parents).

 Next week Thursday, the Grand Rapids Childrens Museum will be debuting a brand new, exciting exhibit! Whether the little person you love is an aspiring police officer or architect, they will be sure to get sincere enjoyment out of experiencing Little GR.

 Little GR is exactly what it sounds like: a miniature city scape constructed to be the perfect size for underage explorers to enjoy it! The children visiting the Grand Rapids Childrens Museum on or after April 30^th, 2015, will have the chance to play like the big kids do. There will be several unique and fun “stores” in the exhibit, including a restaurant, an auto service center, a post office, a grocery store, a bank, and another storefront which will change to be different businesses throughout the upcoming year. Several local businesses contributed to the exhibit, meaning the businesses will be modeled after real, live grown-up businesses here in Grand Rapids (such as the mini-Meijer in the featured image above).

If hitting the Children's Museum isn't your thing, but you need a family-friendly activity for the next week, perhaps you should consider attending the free Money-Smart Week story time at the Alto branch of the Kent District Library. While this may be a little bit of a drive, for families whose little ones are starting to understand money and finances, the trip should be well worth it. Not only does this event focus on children age six and younger understanding how to responsibly use and handle money, every kid who attends will get a free copy of the classic childrens book The Berenstein Bears and the Trouble with Money!

If you're hoping to find something more low-key and relaxing, Mommys are in luck! Today at 11 am, there is a Monday Movie for Mommys at Celebration Cinema South. The theater turns the sound down to protect developing ear drums and leaves the lights on low so that parents with upset little ones can easily exit and re-enter the theater while the movie is playing. Check with Celebration Cinema South for this week's offering; this is a recurring event! A mom-oriented movie screening can be a great chance for mothers with small children to get out of the house, and it's just one example of the multitude of socialization opportunities that the culture in West Michigan affords people.

No matter the age of your family members, there is always something happening in West Michigan. Get out and be a part of it all!

This home, just listed last week, is already pending!

Just listed, the home at 1610 Kitzbuhl Court Southeast in the Forest Hills school district is fresh on the market. Offered at the incredible asking price of $309,900, this three bedroom, two-and-a-half bathroom home is the perfect size for families hoping to settle in one of the best-funded school districts in West Michigan.

Tucked away on a peaceful cul-de-sac in the coveted and lovely Chamonix/Beard Farms neighborhood of Forest Hills, this unparalleled property could be your own little slice of heaven, a safe haven from the stress of the outside world. Nestled on a spacious 1.3 acre lot, the home, which is an oversized ranch, faces beautiful woods to the rear. Be ready to spot some white-tailed deer while sipping your coffee on the gracious wrap-around deck constructed in 2013, which offers a view of not only the lovely, mature trees behind the house but also the eye-catching pond, accessible via a romantic wooden staircase in the yard. No matter what the Michigan weather throws at you, the panoramic glass windows in the home ensure you'll always have a warm, dry place to view the natural beauty surrounding this home!

 The interior of the home is updated, fresh, and full of places for storage. There are closets, built-in-bookcases, and cupboards galore! With 3,048 square feet, there is space for the whole family to enjoy life in this beautiful home. Walk through the space once, and you'll fall in love with the wood floors and abundant natural light.

In addition to three bedrooms and two-and-a-half bathrooms, there are two fireplaces including one with a brick mantel, a gorgeous kitchen that straddles the line between modern and timelessly classic, and a separate, mainfloor laundrey room. The attached garage has four stalls, ensuring there is no fighting over who parks inside when it snows. Even better, the garage is heated via a natural gas heater, so the garage itself is a useful space, even in the dead of winter.

Of course, with a location like this, getting out of the house is also a pleasure. Minutes from downtown Grand Rapids, this peaceful property is also close to schools, the Cascade Township Library, and a host of parks, restaurants and stores!

Next week Friday, April 24^th, 2015, downtown Grand Rapids will host the Grand Rapids Live Arts event, which will feature 1,500 performers involved in one amazing show at the Van Andel Arena. The event will feature the Grand Rapids Symphony, as well as the Symphony Chorus, Grand Rapids Symphony Youth Chorus, Grand Rapids Youth Symphony and Classical Orchestra, Grand Rapids Ballet, Opera Grand Rapids, and Broadway Grand Rapids! The curtains go up at 8 PM, and this will certainly be an arts event to remember!

The Grand Rapids Symphony will be providing the soundtrack for this unique narrative performance. In addition to amazing music (including some of John Williams' work, selections from The Phantom of the Opera, and Beethoven, there will be visual art, such as dancing, presented throughout the evening. Despite not being that large of a city, Grand Rapids has a lot of culture available to its citizens, much of which is represented in this amazing event. Many cities larger than Grand Rapids do not have a ballet company, let alone a civic opera group and a Broadway troupe.

The Live Arts event was dreamed up to be one of the pillars of the celebration of the 85^th Anniversary of the Grand Rapids Symphony. The story being told is about the dream of a child, which makes for plenty of interesting and magical moments within the performance, and its telling will certainly make audience members of all ages feel young at heart. In addition to live performances from the various local performance groups and twenty area schools, there will be motion graphics on a massive 3D screen installed in the Van Andel Arena that should be in sync to the music and story being told. Because of how immersive the presentation promises to be, this should be an engaging and enjoyable show for music lovers of all ages, even children. Many of the performers involved in this show, after all, are children and students who have a passion for the arts.

There is a lot of local excitement about the Live Arts event, which has been advertised very heavily. At this point, with only a week to this once-in-a-lifetime event, most of the closest sections have already been sold out, but there are still seats available for those who are interested in attending. Tickets are $22 for the upper bowl and increase in price up to $67 for the few remaining seats available on the main floor. They can be purchased via Ticketmaster. For those who love the arts or share their life with someone who does, this will be a must-attend local event that people in the west Michigan performance community will be talking about for some time to come. 

The real estate figures from the local professional realtor organization from last month paint a particularly excellent image of the West Michigan real estate market right now. Specifically, this is a perfect time to sell your house or upgrade to a new place! Spring fever has definitely hit the local real estate market, and it is a seller's market right now!

In March, pending sales (compared to March in 2014) were up close to 20 percent, forcing housing market inventory to 1.9 months of inventory, which is quite low. Low enough, in fact, to be pushing up the prices on homes of all sizes and values across the region. Average prices for closing sales are up nearly 7% compared to this time last year. Quite frankly, this is an excellent time to consider listing your home. Sales of investment properties/multi-familiy homes has also increased, though not quite as dramatically, and vacant land sales are also up somewhat. Residential listings in the Greater Grand Rapids area right now are closing very quickly.

The professional staff at Pyxis Realty will always go above and beyond to ensure your freshly listed home is seen by the most appropriate professionals and potential buyers. Now is as good a time as any to consider checking the value of your home and seeing if you can max it out during the sale process; click this link to get started right now with our instant, low-input home value calculator. Once your home is on the market, there's a good chance it won't be there for long! If your plan includes upgrading to a larger home, downsizing to a smaller place, or just relocating to a new neighborhood, it's best to start looking right away.

If you're a buyer who isn't listing a home as well, this is the kind of market where a good realtor is an absolute necessity. You need someone to tell you if the market price for a property is reasonable and also who can aggressively represent your offer if there are multiple offers on the table for your dream home. Having a realtor who can help you find the right places while they are still available is one of the best ways to ensure your dream home doesn't slip through your fingers.

Pyxis Realty is small enough to ensure you will have the best possible experience, with excellent service, while still experiencing the big-brokerage benefits of having a realtor with actual experience working at your side. No purchase or sale is too small for the white-glove treatment at Pyxis Realty, and we strive to ensure our clients find the right place or buyer for their property. If you are considering wading into the West Michigan real estate market this spring, do it with the guidance and help of well-regarded, experienced professionals; be sure to list your home with Pyxis Realty or call our office to arrange viewings of the homes you're considering. Do it soon and take advantage of how hot the market is right now!

Over the last few years, Grand Rapids has been putting in a lot of effort to re-brand itself as an artistic, hip city. The most obvious (and popular) cultural incarnation of this attempt is clearly the annual event known as ArtPrize, but more and more interesting, art-related events are taking place in Grand Rapids (and West Michigan) every year. Some of the more artistically-inclined members of the West Michigan community have always been quick to point out that ArtPrize encourages only certain kinds of submissions (pop art or religious themed artworks are generally the most popular) from certain kinds of artists (those able to afford to produce large-scale pieces and travel to West Michigan to rep their art in person during ArtPrize).

If you haven't heard about it yet, the DisArt Festival is something that may interest those with artistic inclinations or those who have an appreciation for life in our communities as experienced by the disabled community. This year's event is themed “Year of Arts + Access” and focuses on making Grand Rapids as welcoming as possible to people of every level of ability. It has been endorsed by the city's mayor, George Heartwell. The focus is on not only visible but also invisible disabilities, which are often left out of the greater societal discussion about ableism and access.

This year's DisArt Festival began on Friday, April 10^th, and events will run through the 25^th of April, 2015. Some of the major exhibitions will be available and viewable after the end of the Festival at their biggest downtown venues, specifically, the exhibitions at the Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts, the Grand Rapids Art Museum and Kendall College of Art and Design.

One of the most unique and powerful offerings of the DisArt Festival is the Challenge, wherein organizers ask able attendees to consider serious impediments that those with disabilities confront in Downtown Grand Rapids that many might never even notice. For example, the Challenge points out how“gaps too large in grates could cause serious problems for people with low vision using canes, these devices could get caught and cause dangerous falls” and highlights several places with this exact issue in downtown, along with many others, such as problematic light posts, massive cracks in the sidewalk, rough pavement, and signposts or garbage cans that block mobility devices on sidewalks. All of these can make traversing a particular stretch of the city nearly impossible for those with mobility issues, but he majority of local residents probably walk past these things every day without a second glance. The event really attempts to put people in the shoes of those living with disabilities.

Those who are interested in updates about daily events running through the 25^th of this month can like the DisArts Festival on Facebook for regular updates.  For those who wish to better understand life with disabilities, especially those with children who are curious about how this substantial subset of our population experiences our community, this event is eye-opening and sure to open the door to important conversations about access and design.

When it comes to local sports teams, West Michigan has a few that really stand out from the rest. Among them are the Grand Rapids Griffins, an American Hockey League team which has eleven championship wins under its proverbial skates. The team was created shortly after the construction of the Van Andel Arena in downtown Grand Rapids, and it is owned by Dan DeVos. While Grand Rapids and professional hockey do not immediately go together in many people's minds, given the proximity to one of the best National Hockey League teams (the Detroit Red Wings) and the large, urban community that the team has to draw on, this AHL team and West Michigan are really a match made in heaven!

Since its creation in 1996, the Grand Rapids Griffins have been a very popular local draw, bringing out fans in the hundreds and thousands to all kinds of events, not just games. Their popularity makes sense; this team knows how to bring home the trophies! In the 2012/2013 year, the team was first in the Midwest, and in the 2013/2014 year, they were second in the Midwest. This year, they are poised to go all the way again, and local fans are salivating at the chance to bring home the championship again.

Just this Wednesday, on April 8^th, the Grand Rapids Griffins defeated the Milwaukee Admirals with a final score of 6-2 at the Van Andel Arena, at a sold-out game. Last week Friday, however, they suffered a loss against the Rockford IceHogs with the same score: 6-2. They quickly bounced back with a win against the Toronto Marlies on Saturday, with a final score of 7-2.

Although they travel all over across the Midwest and sometimes the country to play their games, the Grand Rapids Griffins will always be a hometown favorite, in no small part because they always try to make the most of having the home-arena advantage, as it were. The win on Wednesday over the Milwaukee Admirals was the tenth winning game at the Grand Rapids' Griffins' home arena out of the last eleven games played on their home ice. For the fans in West Michigan, that means that investing in tickets to a Griffins game is almost always a worthwhile investment, because chances are good they'll get to see their team tearing up the ice on the way to yet another victory.

Currently, the Griffins are in second place in the Midwest Division of the AHL, with several other teams hot on their proverbial tail. This Friday, they'll play the first of two games at San Antonio, and the outcome of those games will have immediate impact on the Griffins' standing in the league and whether or not they have a shot at the championship or a division title this year. If you've never seen an AHL hockey game, this season may be the time to start enjoying the local team. With any luck, the Griffins will be headed back north next week with more games scheduled, hopefully on their way to another Calder Cup or title.

Spring is here, and it is one of the best times of year to list a house (lots of buyers, looking for the right place) or buy a home (lots of home on the market due to seasonal demand). Whether being cooped up in the same space all winter has you very aware of your need to stop renting or if you're looking to move up (or down) a size in homes, right now is a great time to start looking.

From a seller's standpoint, spring is a great time to list because well-maintained homes and lawns will currently be at one of their peak points of interest to consumers. With spring flowers, weather that isn't too hot or too cold to go tromping through houses, and plenty of sunshine (between rainstorms), the spring is a wonderful time to allow people to see themselves living in your home. The drama and romance of spring are often contagious, and now is a time when people may very well “fall in love” with the home of their dreams. It could be your home!

For buyers, spring can be boon because the weather that comes with the changing of the seasons makes it quite difficult for sellers to hide any major issues, like a leak in the roof. It's easy to tell if the yard doesn't get adequate drainage or sunlight for the kind of yard or garden you dream of maintaining at your home, and the large number of houses on the market for the spring real estate rush mean you don't have to settle for something less than your dream home.

Regardless of whether you're hoping to buy or sell, contacting the professional staff at Pyxis Realty is the best way to ensure you get the best price possible and the kind of service that will leave you able to enjoy the spring sunshine and rainshowers, because the difficult issues will all be handled. If you are considering selling your home in order to move on to the next, but aren't sure if this is the right time for you to maximize your equity, consider trying out our Instant Home Value tool. With just a few questions and your address, our smart system will estimate the range of prices for your home, so that you can see if today is the right day to list your home.

As for buying, both first time home buyers and those with more experience in the game can benefit from professional assistance from Pyxis Realty. Not only can the friendly staff at Pyxis help you sort through hundreds of potential area properties to find some that may be a great fit for you, they'll also guide you through every step of the process, so you don't have to be afraid of the home-buying process.

Those who have purchased a home before will likely immediately recognize the value of a Pyxis realtor assisting in their transaction. With personalized service, attention to the important details that can make or break a real estate transaction, and the experience to ensure everyone is comfortable with the process, our staff can give even the most jaded real estate purchaser a fresh outlook on how enjoyable the home buying experience really can be!

It's the surest sign that spring is here: the season for the local baseball team, the West Michigan Whitecaps, opens this Thursday, April 9^th. For those in Comstock Park (or the rest of West Michigan and the Greater Grand Rapids area), the opening day of the Whitecaps is the true beginning of the spring season.

The West Michigan Whitecaps are a minor league baseball team, considered a Class A minor league team. They've been a part of the culture in West Michigan since 1994, when they practiced and played at Old Kent Park. The park's name was changed in 2002 to Fifth Third Ballpark, after Fifth Third Bank purchased Old Kent Bank. Since then, the West Michigan Whitecaps and their mascots, Crash the River Rascal, Roxy the River Rascal and Franky the Swimming Pig have called the Fifth Third Ballpark on West River Drive their home.

The Fifth Third Ballpark has had its ups and downs just like any athletic team out there. Late last winter, a fire broke out in one of the suites in the ballpark, causing substantial damage to the facility including suites, the clubhouse, and the concourse. Ownership decided to use this as an opportunity to improve the facilities, and the 2014 season opened last year without a delay. This year, the park will feature The Budweiser Bowtie Deck, new construction, as well as

The West Michigan Whitecaps are five time Midwest League champions, most recently in 2007. They seem overdue for another championship, and this season might just be the one! They kick of their 2015 schedule on Thursday with a game against the Dayton Dragons. This season will also see the unveiling of another new feature of the ballpark: the Craft Clubhouse, sponsored by the locally famous Founder's Brewery, which will feature local craft beers.

If beer isn't your thing, check out the various food options, including the notorious Fifth Third Burger, which includes 5/3s of a pound of ground beef (1 and 2/3 pounds of patties). Those who are able to defeat the goliath burger in one sitting can win a special t-shirt, but be forewarned, this 4,800 calorie burger is labeled as a “dietary disaster” by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.

Between the game itself, the world-famous concession stand, the craft beers, and the show-stopping Famliy Fare Fireworks show after the game itself, there's something for everyone at the year opener for the West Michigan Whitecaps. There will be plenty of chances throughout the spring and summer to enjoy a ballgame, a beer, and a massive, coronary-inducing burger, but the first game of the season is always something special. The first 1,000 fans through the door on Thursday will receive special mittens in addition to an afternoon of great family fun. Tickets for the first and subsequent games are available for purchase online, with prices starting at $7 for lawn seats and $15 for premium seats located behind home plate. There are also season passes available for the die-hard Whitecaps fans out there. Here's to a great season of America's passtime!

If you're looking for something local to do this weekend that isn't egg or bunny related, you're in real luck! Today, Friday April 3^rd, 2015, is the official first day of the return of the Roger B. Chaffee planetarium's popular Pink Floyd laser light show, called the “Dark Side.” The first showing for 2015 will begin at 9 PM tonight, and if previous years mean anything, it promises to be a great show.

The Roger B. Chaffee Planetarium is located on the second floor of the Grand Rapids Public Museum, and the address (for those of you using a GPS or mapping device to navigate the city) is 272 Pearl Street NW in Grand Rapids, with a 49504 zip code. Beginning tomorrow (Saturday, April 5^th), there will also be a daytime showing every day at 4 PM and evening showings at 8 PM (other than Easter Sunday, when the planetarium is closed).

The planetarium is named for West Michigan native Roger Bruce Chaffee, who was one of three pilots that were killed in a fire during a pre-flight check of the Apollo 1 mission. Chaffee, who was in charge of communications, remained strapped into his seat attempting to perform his duty while the fire destroyed the cabin. Because the Apollo had pure oyxgen being pumped in, the fire was intense, eventually ripping through a wall and producing smoke, which killed the three men aboard. Chaffee was awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor and the Navy Air Medal after his death, and he is considered a local hero by many aspiring pilots and scientists in West Michigan.

“Dark Side: The Light Show” will be the first Roger B. Chaffee Planetarium original show shown at the planetarium since it underwent $1.2 million in renovations in 2013 and 2014. The planetarium now features the latest Digistar 5.0 projection, powerful surround sound, and comfortable reclining seats for while you're enjoying the show. Previous “Dark Side” shows have included the iconic Pink Folyd album set to enjoyable laser-images, and this year's show promises to be a great one, as the show has been completely redone to make the best of the upgrades in the facility.

Tickets to the planetarium shows are $4, and they are free to those who have a museum membership. Those who have a WLAVip card receive a dollar discount if they show the card while purchasing the ticket for the show (as WLAV was a sponsor of this year's “Dark Side” show). The show will run at least through the month of April, providing ample opportunity for people to head downtown and enjoy this classic album and laser light show presented on cutting-edge, modern technology! This is sure to be an instant classic, as the shows in previous years have been. Have a great weekend!

This week is filled with family-friendly activities across the West Michigan area. It's Easter weekend,after all, so egg hunts abound! Few things can bring out the child-like joy in us all like watching little children scramble around, looking for brightly colored eggs filled with candies and other prizes. Regardless of what part of West Michigan you're in, there's probably an egg hunt close to you this Saturday! Be forewarned, for those young at heart, most of these events limit participation in the actual egg hunt to children 10 and under.

In the Grand Rapids area, there's the long-standing John Ball Park Easter Egg Hunt, which gives out free candy and other goodies to roughly 2,500 kids every year. The park's address is 1300 West Fulton Street in Grand Rapids (on the west side of the city), and the egg hunt will run from 10 AM to noon on Saturday, April 4^th, 2015. Those who are planning to attend can RSVP on Facebook here.

For those outside of the Grand Rapids area, there are also municipal egg hunts in Grand Haven and Spring Lake on Saturday. Grand Haven's event runs from 11 AM to noon and will feature over 5,000 eggs hidden throughout Central Park in downtown Grand Haven. The Spring Lake Easter Egg Hunt will also feature about 5,000 eggs and will run from 10 AM to 11 AM on Saturday. The address for the Spring Lake Egg Hunt is 808 Central Ave in Spring Lake. In addition to these three events, there are over a dozen other egg hunts on Saturday and Sunday held by a wide variety of area churches. Check with ones in your area to see who's sponsoring a neighborhood Easter Egg hunt this weekend.

If you don't like hunting for eggs or don't have any young children to take with you to an Egg Hunt, perhaps you'd prefer to get in the Easter Spirit with another local tradition: The Bunny Train. Located at 311 E. Danforth St, Coopersville, this short-run event is sure to bring out the kid in everyone. This Saturday, April 4^th, there will be three 120-minute long Bunny Train trips available. Put on by the Coopersville and Marne railway, this event features a peaceful, visual delightful trip through the West Michigan countryside in the first days of real spring (as well as a few more bunnies), a treat for people of all ages.

Inside the Bunny Train, the Easter Bunny and a cast of musical characters perform inside each of the passenger cars, which can hold a total of 200 people per trip. The Springtime Princess will also read books and lead passengers in spring-related songs during the trip. The cost for a trip you won't soon forget is $16.50 for adults ($1 off for seniors), $14.50 for kids ages 2-12, and kids under two are free.

Train departures for this Saturday are scheduled for 11 AM, 1 PM, and 3 PM. Tickets often sell out for these events, so purchase your tickets early! Boarding begins 20 minutes prior to published times, so make sure to arrive a little early for your voyage by calling 616-997-7000 today. Happy Easter, everyone! Enjoy the festivities West Michigan has to offer!